31 January 2015

Loan extension shows bank's confidence in1MDB. Really Chua? You can say that with a straight face? Are you a retard? Mentally challenged or just plain stupid? The Malaysian public believe what you said as much as the Americans believed Clinton when he said "I did not have sexual relations with that women". Barisan Nasional knows the value of a little humor when all else fails but If this Chua is the best they can come up with to bring some comic relief into the 1MDB debacle then we have to laugh not with him but at him!His approach?The old tried and tested routine : Wag the Dog...political spin.....tipu...call it what you want.It would have the same effect of some one declaring to who ever is listening (not many lah!) that Rosmah's contribution to world peace far outweighs her body mass! Your first reaction upon seeing "World Peace" and "Rosmah" in one sentence is to equate the two together in a positive way. Hmmmm Rosmah is working towards world peace - hooray for her! That is until you come to the latter part of the story...."far outweighs her body mass"..and immedeitly you conjure up a fat lady on one side of the scale and world peace on the other...who wins? The fat lady of course! But at least for a Rosmah desperate for accolades of any sort, that few seconds of being connected to world peace is better than nothing at all. This Chua guy from Labis is doing the same thing with the 1MDB situation.What this Chua is telling us is that if you owe the bank money and you go to the bank on Friday and tell them you will not be paying the scheduled repayments due that coming Monday the bank manager will react in this way: Yes sir yes sir...three bags full Sir...shake your hand, pat you on your back and walk you to the door and hold it open until you get in. Then he stands there waving goodbye until you turn the corner!You and I know that the truth is far from that! First of all you, the bank manager, his secretary, the office boy and even the guard at the bank entrance knows that you are not paying the scheduled payment on Monday because you do not have the money to do so. Now if you are doing it for the third time....this is what will happen: Bank calls in the Mafia to do the negotiation for them because by now the banks know you obviously have no assets the bank can sita.No point in threatening to downgrade your credit rating because it is already gone South of the border to Mexico.Posters of you will now be plastered on the walls to alert guards to not allow you into the bank anymore.Chua is trying to take our attention away from the fact that 1MDB is asking for the third extension of a payment long overdue. He tells us that the Banks trust 1MDB enough to give another extension. This is another way of saying that 1MDB is too big to fail lah! Of course it is too big to fail because when it fails it drags the banking system down with it. So the banks are wetting their trousers just thinking of what will happen if 1MDB fail. 1MDB has got the banking system by the balls and when you have anyone or anything by their balls you know their hearts and minds will follow!Remember Clinton trying to deflect the Americans attention on his infamous relationship with Monica Lewinsky by declaring Operations Infinte Reach - ordering missles strikes against suspect terrorists target in Sudan and Afghanistan three days after he admitted in a nationally televised address that he had indeed had an inappropriate relationship with Lewinsky? So now this BN government is doing the same thing. Do not worry what the impending failure 1MDB will do to the nation's economy. Do not worry about the abuse of those tasked with managing the funds.Be proud of the fact that the banks have, for the third time, extended the period for 1MDB to pay what is due to these Malaysian banks. So focus on the bank's thumbs up to 1MDB request for yet another extension to their loan repayment not 1MDB's performance to date.I say BULL! Aiyah Chua you got no standard ma...Nang boti nang. Kui boti kui! - steadyaku47

An opposition MP today said it is “disgraceful”
for debt-ridden 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) to resort to borrowing
from the country’s second-richest man to settle its loans.

This is despite the fact that the company had claimed that it had
already fully redeemed its investment in Cayman Islands of RM3.9
billion, at the current favourable exchange rate, said Petaling Jaya
Utara MP Tony Pua.

“The news is absolutely disgraceful for 1MDB and a terrible
embarrassment for the Malaysian government that its sovereign investment
fund had to stoop so low as to depend on the goodwill of a local
billionaire to temporarily settle its loans,” he said.

1MDB has already twice missed payments on the RM2 billion bridge loan it took from the two banks.

The company has been dogged by controversy over its RM41 billion debts,
hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue earned by Goldman Sachs for
handling its bond issues and a perceived lack of transparency.

Meanwhile, Pua said that borrowing from Ananda was proof that 1MDB is
now held hostage to the “white knight” and that there would be concerns
over the terms of the loan which would be conceded in Ananda’s favour.

“This is especially since 1MDB has a terrible track record of securing special loans,” he noted.

Pua cited the time when the company raised USD3.5 billion of 10-year
bonds to fund the acquisitions of independent power producers (IPPs),
Tanjong Energy and Genting Sanyen.

“It could only do so with the corporate guarantee provided by the
International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC), a wholly-owned
investment vehicle of the Abu Dhabi government.

'Expensive price tag' And despite having to price the bonds at an expensive 5.99 percent, the
“guarantee” from IPIC came with an expensive price tag, Pua pointed out.

Pua said 1MDB had to dock 40 percent of the loan with IPIC as security deposit, which amounted to RM4.47 billion and recorded in

the March 2014 financial statements.

“Effectively, this means that 1MDB is paying 5.99 percent interest on a
US$3.5 billion loan despite having access to only 60 percent of the
funds or US$2.1 billion,” he said.

Pua (right)
added that 1MDB had to offer the option for IPIC’s subsidiary, Aabar
Investments PJS, to acquire up to 49 percent equity interest in 1MDB’s
acquired energy subsidiaries in order to secure the guarantee.

“The above are on top of the exorbitant certain commissions, fees and
expenses paid to investment bank Goldman Sachs - which was previously
criticised in Parliament - amounting to approximately 10 percent or
US$350 million.

“Taking all of the above cost of funds - USD250 million and USD350
million - and the locked deposit of USD1.4 billion, 1MDB’s subsidiaries
have taken a loan of USD3.5 billion with an unheard of 13.98 percent
effective interest for a so-called ‘sovereign wealth fund’.

The DAP parliamentarian, therefore, stressed that it was crucial for
1MDB to disclose the full terms agreed with Ananda for the temporary
loan.

“The new CEO, Arul Kanda Kandasamy, must keep to his word that he
welcomes public scrutiny as a good thing that will only serve to
strengthen the company and its governance.

“If 1MDB is further short-changed, then perhaps whatever value that is
left of the stalled initial public offering (IPO) of 1MDB’s energy
subsidiaries will be insufficient to cover the massive RM42 billion debt
which 1MDB has accumulated to date,” Pua noted.

Going deeper in debt?

Meanwhile Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli also questioned why the loan was
necessary when 1MDB had claimed to have repatriated all of its Cayman
Islands funds.

"It raises the question that if it is true that the Cayman Islands has
truly been brought back to Malaysia, why doesn't 1MDB have funds to
repay the debts (to Maybank)?" he asked in a separate statement.

Rafizi warned that 1MDB's problems will worsen this year, owing to
additional bridging loan it has reportedly taken worth USD1 billion.- mk

Isana Arul Kanda - mana itu duit dari Cayman Island? Apa sudah jadi, RM7 bilion bila boleh sampai Malaysia? Kenapa mesti pinjam dari Ananda kalau duit dari Cayman ada?Anonymous$&@? - What a joke. Claim to have $8b coming back for Cayman but still not back yet. Now need $2b bailout !!!wg321 - This is just like borrowing money from the 2nd “Ah Long” to pay the 1st “Ah Long”. At the end of the day, the debt is still there. Where is the money from Cayman Islands that was brought back to Malaysia to pay the debt to Maybank and RHB? It is very obvious the money from Cayman Islands does not exist. If the money from Cayman Island do exists, why don’t you pay your debt instead of giving excuses? Najib knows nothing about doing big business. He is giving all the wrong advice to 1MDB e.g. advice like “got money, don’t pay”. Enjoy first.

Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli urged the people on Friday to demand that the Federal Government remove “hidden” taxes imposed on motorists at the pump, adding that RON95 should be RM1.62 per litre and diesel RM1.65, based on average pump prices for January.He also accused Putrajaya of having milked motorists of more than RM1 billion in taxes on fuel over the past two months as pump prices continued to be managed on the controlled float system.“This follows the Government keeping the actual market price of fuel a secret after the removal of subsidies,” Rafizi said.According to Rafizi, in January 2015 alone, motorists paid RM307 million in petrol taxes for RON95 and RM209 million for diesel thereby allowing Putrajaya to collect a whopping RM516 million without the people even realising it.“Since the managed float system was adopted on December 1 last year until today, the government has collected RM1.149 billion from petrol and diesel taxes,” he explained.Saying, “The higher than market prices and taxes means a windfall for the Barisan Nasional (BN) Government,” Rafizi also pointed out that in January, motorists paid RM1.91 for every litre of RON95 grade petrol, while the Singapore Mogas 95 Unleaded benchmark price was at RM1.63 a litre on January 28.For diesel, he said, motorists paid RM1.93 per litre when the actual price should have been RM1.62, according to the Singapore Gasoil standard.In regard to the average fuel prices for February that will be announced tomorrow, Rafizi said the price for RON95 should be RM1.62 per litre while diesel should be RM1.65 minus the subsidy.However should the government heed the demand of PKR to subsidise fuel, the prices should be RM1.32 per litre for RON95 and RM1.35 per litre for diesel, he explained, adding, “If the prices announced tomorrow are different, the related minister must explain how the prices for both types of fuel are calculated.“We came up with these prices based on the same formula used by BN and the MOPS (Means of Platt Singapore) market prices,” he said.He urged petroleum companies to sell fuel to petrol stations on a consignment basis to help minimise their losses and added, “The billions in taxes covertly collected (by Putrajaya) should be used to set up a fuel price stabilisation fund to manage a rebound in global crude oil prices.”“It should remove sales tax on petrol or diesel purchases by the industrial sector to bring down production costs.” - fmt

30 January 2015

An Anwar Ibrahim in Sungai Buloh is stronger ethically, morally and politically than a Najib Razak in Seri Perdana...

Will he or will he not go to prison?For most Malaysians Anwar's guilt or innocence in the sodomy of Saiful is no longer an issue that concerns them. How can it be a concern to them when their concept of right and wrong, good and evil, honor and dishonor and everything that they hold dear and in reverence of, have been throughly bastardize by the very people who now wants Anwar Ibrahim to be interned yet again for a crime that pales into insignificance when we take into consideration the murder of Altantuya, the fallout from the inevitable failure of 1MDB and the many deaths of those in the custody of PDRM - and that is to just name of few of what this Barisan Nasional governement can be held accountable for. Which nation, what legal system and why would a Prime Minister and an Attorney General amongst others, concern themselves with what has been done to the anus of Saiful?Before we concern ourselves with what has happened to Saiful's Anus, there are more pressing matters to be addressed.We are disgusted that our courts have found the two UTK operatives guilty of Altantuya's murder without going into the reason why they would want to murder her! Why did those two UTK operatives kill Altantuya? The courts may have done the bidding of their political masters by finding those two guilty but they have done so in such a manner that leaves many Malaysians to question, not for the first time, the integrity of the Malaysian legal system. The public will not be placated by the verdict of guilty when so many questions about her murder still go answered.

What is insulting to us all is that the government led by Najib Razak expects us to believe that justice is being served by the jailing of Anwar Ibrahim. We believe Najib's swearing in the name of ALLAH that he had nothing to do with Altantuya in the same vein as we believe that Mahathir's children became rich through their own efforts! As we believe that Barisan Nasional politicians and their Ministers live within their means.As we beleive that what Jakim and Jawi does is for the betterment of Muslims and Islam. As we believe that Taib Mahmud insane wealth has nothing to do with his position as CM of Sarawak.As we believe the veracity of what the three datuks accuse Anwar of doing when one of them, Rahim Thambi Chik, is a padeoplhile whose rape of an underage Malay schoolgirl has gone unpunished by any government or religious authority.And this list has not even begin to scratch the surface of what this Umno led Barisan Nasional government and its Prime Ministers, Ministers and other functionaries have done in the name of government!What Anwar Ibrahim has done while DPM and FM during his BN days are no less and no worse than what any other DPM, FM, Ministers and Prime Ministers of this Umnno led BN government has been doing before and after him. For most Malaysians Anwar Ibrahim is the public face to channel their contempt, disgust and disdain for the Barisan Nasonal government headed by a weak and clueless Najib Razak. For most Malaysian if/when Anwar goes to prison it will be another blatant attempt by the Barisan Nasional government to manage the legal system of our nation for their own political ends. This attempt could prove fatal to Najib Razak's position as PM and in the long run, prove fatal to Umno's domination in Malaysian politics by the next general election. Anwar's Ibrahim decision to not flee Malaysia in the light of his certain incaceration is a bold and courageous decision, a sacrifice maybe, a gamble even - for without doubt Anwar knows that this may be the final roll of the dice that will decide the fate of his own political ambitions to lead the opposition into government. But if you were to view this in the context of our nation's short history and the future that such a sacrifice promise, I would think that you may begin to understand why Anwar made the decision to stay and face a corrupt and arrogant government rather than to go into comfortable exile.

Anwar Ibrahim has stayed because Najib is not a worthy opponent to run away from.Anwar Ibrahim in prison, in solitary and kept away from family and friends but still in Malaysia is more a threat to Najib Razak than an Anwar Ibrahim in exile elsewhere. From prison Anwar Ibrahim can still hear the roar of dissent against the Najib led BN government.From prison Anwar Ibrahim can still lead that movement for change and add his voice to the crescendo of voices that will ultimately end this Najib led BN government. From prison Anwar Ibrahim is a more formidable opponent for Najib Razak than an Anwar Ibrahim in exile.The physical presence of Anwar in the country will give courage and encouragement to many Malaysians to continue their fight for his release and for what Pakatan Rakyat that he leads have all been fighting for - justice for all and decency in a government without corruption,without arrogance and certainly a government for the people, by the people and of the people. In prison Anwar Ibrahim will still be defiant, still be a thorn in Najib's side and will still be a tangible symbol of hope and defiance in a wasteland of corruption, arrogance and injustice that our nation has now become. Najib will not be able to ignore his presence. It is not a case of being out of sight and out of mind. As always Najib Razak has not been able to understand the ramification of what he does in his private and public life.Najib has consistently lied and have been proven wrong in so many of his projections, predictions and in his actions that today Malaysians would have more faith in having monkeys guard their bananas than believe that Najib's has their interest at heart.And so Anwar Ibrahim will take his chances that internment in Sungai Buloh will be only until the result of the next general election is announced. Anwar Ibrahim will take that chance that he, not Najib, will triumph before, during or after the next general election.Yes it is not a level playing field and yes, in retrospect there really is nothing else that Anwar Ibrahim can do but stay and take what comes on his chin. ...but give Anwar Ibrahim credit where credit is due. Anwar Ibrahiim fights his own fights no matter what the odds against him. Najib does not!Anwar Ibrahiim faces his own demons head on and the consequences of his own folly and deeds without flinching or ducking for cover. Najib does not!Anwar through his words and deeds have time and time again shown that he will not be intimidated, threatened or cowered by the bullying of a Barisan Nasional government that has shown by its words and deeds, to not be hesitant in bastardizing the legal process under its care to pursue a half bake investigation into what happened to the anus of this Saiful in its attempt to intimidate, threatened and cower Anwar Ibrahim into submission. An attempt that has only so far served to galvanize the Malaysian public to emphatize and sympathize with the situation that Anwar is now in. All this has served to out Najib for what he really is - a coward of the worst dimension. Anwar Ibrahim stayed because Najib is not a worthy opponent to run away from. No worse an insult could be perpetrated upon Najib by Anwar than this! - steadyaku47

Opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim says one need not worry about Pakatan
Rakyat breaking up should he go to jail in the Sodomy II decision come
Feb 10.

He also called on Selangor Menteri Besar Azmin Ali to be "courageous and break the barriers" to effect change for the better.

Anwar was reported saying this in an exclusive interview, which is the focus story in the latest issue of the DAP mouthpiece The Rocket.

"Nobody
wants to go to jail. I don’t want to go to jail… but some say Anwar
inside is a problem, Anwar outside is also a problem, but I view it
positively after all.

"People tend to forget that I was already in jail when Pakatan emerged,
of course not with the name Pakatan Rakyat, but this broad concept of a
coalition. So this isn’t something new," said Anwar, who is also the
Permatang Pauh MP.

“Some say my entry to jail may even fortify and strengthen Pakatan,
because there will be a rallying point. So I always view it in the
positive.

“I am optimistic. I feel there is still hope for change in my lifetime.

“There is a crack in our country, this racial and religious strife is a
huge problem, and if we do not change this now, it will be a backward
trend.

"People accuse politicians for politicising these issues, but they are beyond partisan politics.

“This is the safety of our nation; because we have never seen this before, and I’ve been in politics for a long time.

“If you allow this unchecked there is no turning back, it will lead to an explosion.

"We (see it) as our duty to save the nation,” he told The Rocket in the interview published in Chinese and English.

'Azmin must be bold, direct'

He was also asked if a tattered Pakatan, in view of a splintered PAS as
well as the public PAS-DAP bickering, would be able to withstand his
absence.

“Is Pakatan strong enough to do that? Yes we have to (be). We are
gaining, and that’s why I think it is important to maintain the cordial
relationship among the parties,” he said.

In
a message to the Selangor menteri besar in the same interview, Anwar
said Azmin must "go beyond relying on religious authorities or PAS" to
enter the rural Muslim base.

“I think you have to accept in the political process there always is the
same principle: those who support BN, not all are agreeable to BN, but
they fear change.

“Then, there are those who vote Pakatan because they want change, but may not be as supportive of Pakatan overall.

“It is then for us to articulate our vision and present our agenda, that is, the policy framework we have agreed upon.

“There is no party, not even BN, that has presented that sort of
detailed account, but it is important that with our limitation of access
to the mainstream media that we go and break those barriers.

“That is my advice to the current MB, to be courageous and break the
barriers, enter the rural Muslim base, go beyond relying on religious
authorities or PAS.

“It should be a Pakatan agenda to be bold and deal with the issues directly,” he told The Rocket, which is sold at selected newsstands.- mk

Someone has to be held accountable for UPSR exam paper leak, but who...

When public examination papers are leaked, students suffer and the blame game starts. Who are the ones who should actually be taking responsibility? Wouldn’t it logically be those who are entrusted with the care and custody of the examination papers? That does not seem to be the case with last year’s Primary School Evaluation Test (UPSR) imbroglio which affected close to half-a-million students. The two Malaysian Examinations Board (LP) heads who were in the limelight during the whole fiasco last year have been cleared of any wrongdoing. On Jan 27, Second Education Minister Datuk Seri Idris Jusoh reportedly said former board director Dr Na'imah Ishak and former deputy director of operations Dr Wan Ilias Wan Salleh who were “suspended” over the UPSR leaks are now in the clear. There are a few things that are confusing here. First, the fact that these two officers were indeed actually “suspended” is doubtful. This is why. On Sept 12, Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin had reportedly announced the suspension of Na'imah and Wan Ilias "with immediate effect", saying both officials should be held responsible for tarnishing the image of the ministry and that of public examinations. "Dr Na'imah has to be responsible because the UPSR leaks have compromised the integrity of public examinations and the ministry," Muhyiddin was quoted as saying in a tweet by Bernama on the same day. On Sept 20, Education Ministry secretary-general Tan Sri Dr Madinah Mohamad clarified that Na'imah and Wan Ilias had only been reassigned and not suspended from duty, as “they are not being punished”. “They have not been suspended. They have been assigned other duties unrelated to the Examinations Board to enable the independent committee to carry out its investigations," Madinah was quoted as saying. But on Jan 27, Idris was quoted as saying the “suspended” duo are now in the clear and are still in service but no longer in their previous portfolios. So were they ever “suspended”?

Second, the LP is the body entrusted with preparing and printing question papers for all public examinations as these documents are classified under the Official Secrets Act before the examinations start. On the official LP web page it is stated that among its objectives are to plan, build and issue all types of examinations and assessments based on the curriculum and the National Education Philosophy as well as control, coordinate and handle all school and public examinations. Yes, others may have been the ones responsible for leaking the papers via social media but the chain of custody begins with the LP which should ensure the papers remain secure throughout the chain until the examination begins. According to http://www.acas.org.uk, (Acas provides free and impartial information and advice to employers and employees on all aspects of workplace relations and employment law), the concept of vicarious liability in the context of a workplace is where an employer can be liable for the acts or omissions of its employees, provided it can be shown that they took place in the course of their employment. Wouldn’t this concept make both Na'imah and Wan Ilias responsible for the leaks? If there were no problems in the chain of custody, how would there have been leaks in the first place? Also, does Muhyiddin’s statement that the duo had “compromised the integrity of public examinations and the ministry” hold no weight? - Sonia Ramachandran,theantdailySeseorang harus dipertanggungjawabkan atas kebocoran UPSR, tapi siapa?

The Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) has declared that all 239
passengers and crew on board Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 are presumed
to have "lost their lives".

DCA director-general Azharuddin Abdul Rahman made the announcement via a live telecast on RTM 1 this evening.

"It is therefore with the heaviest heart and deepest sorrow on behalf of
the Malaysian government, we officially declare MH370 an accident," he
said.

However, he added that the search operation for the plane will continue.

MH370, which was en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur, went missing
last March, and its disappearance has been classified as one of greatest
aviation mysteries. MAS, he said, would undertake its responsibilities regarding the rights and interests of the next-of-kin as provided for by law, and was ready to proceed with the compensation process to the families of those on board the ill-fated flight."This includes the fulfilment of the compensation process, whether it is pursued through consultation or through litigation."

Despite the "frustrating" 327 day search, Azharuddin said countries in the joint search team had never wavered in their commitment, adding that Malaysia would continue in its efforts in order to bring closure to the tragedy."The government of Malaysia also assures the families of the passengers and crew that the search for MH370 remains a priority."This declaration is by no means the end. We will forge ahead with the cooperation and assistance of the governments of China and Australia. MH370, its passengers and its crew will always be remembered and honoured.”Search operation 'a priority'
“Without in any way intending to diminish the feelings of the families,
it is hoped that this declaration will enable the families to obtain the
assistance they need, in particular through the compensation process.”

"Malaysia Airlines will undertake its responsibilities and this includes
the fulfilment of the compensation process by the next-of-kin (pix, below), whether through consultation or litigation.

“We
understand that Malaysia Airlines is ready to proceed immediately with
the compensation process with due regard for the readiness of the
next-of-kin to take this step,” he said.

With regards to the search for MH370, Azharuddin stressed that the ongoing search and locate operation would continue.

“The Malaysian government assures the families of the passengers and crew that the search for MH370 remains a priority.

“We are committed to continuing all reasonable efforts to bring closure
to this unfortunate tragedy, with the cooperation and assistance of the
governments of China and Australia.

'Survivability highly unlikely'

With regards to investigations over the plane’s disappearance,
Azharuddin said that due to the lack of physical evidence, particularly
of the flight recorders, there was no evidence to substantiate any
speculations as to the cause of the plane's disappearance.

“An interim statement detailing the progress of the safety investigation
is expected to be released on or around the one year anniversary of the
accident,” he added.

Azharuddin
said Annex 13 to the Convention on International Civil Aviation
(Chicago Convention) said the definition of the term 'accident' includes
'the aircraft is missing'.

“It also states that an aircraft is considered to be missing when the
official search has been terminated and the wreckage has not been
located,” he said.

On the conclusion that MH370 had ended its flight in the southern Indian
Ocean, Azharuddin pointed out that it is a remote location and far from
any possible landing sites.

“It is also an area with adverse sea conditions with known depths of more than 6,000 metres.

“After 327 days and based on all available data as well as the
circumstances mentioned earlier, survivability in the defined area is
highly unlikely,” he said.

Website support

Azharuddin also said that a special section had been set-up on the MH370 official website solely for the next-of-kin.

“It includes information on the search and investigation efforts, the
compensation process, responses to next-of-kin’s inquiries as well as
other forms of assistance that are available to the next-of-kin."

“It is hoped that this dedicated portal will provide a continuing support system for the next-of-kin,” he said.MH370 disappeared less than an hour after departing from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on March 8 last year. Most of with 239 people on board were Chinese nationals.The initial search and rescue operations covered the South China Sea, the Straits of Malacca, the Andaman Sea and the southern Indian Ocean, involving 65 aircraft and 95 vessels and experts from 25 countries.On April 28, 2014, the search and rescue phase transitioned to a underwater search and recovery phase led by the Joint Agency Coordination Centre (JACC) and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB)."The underwater search is still ongoing at this time and the exercise is currently being performed by four vessels, namely the Go Phoenix, Fugro Discovery, Fugro Equator and Fugro Supporter. To date, the search has covered over 18,600 square kilometres," Azharuddin said today.

Meanwhile, family members of those aboard the Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 have
cried foul for not being informed about a government press conference on
the matter until the last minute.

One of them, Lim Wee Hoon, said she was contacted by MAS at about 2.40pm
today and was told to tune into the live broadcast of the press
conference, which was scheduled for 3.30pm.

"They are expecting me to have a TV in front of me all the time," she chided before reporters attending the press conference.

Although it was a media event, at least seven next-of-kin of the MH370
victims came to the press conference venue and sat among members of the
media.

They said they heard talk about the press conference scheduled to be held since Tuesday night.

However, the press conference was ultimately called off, with press
officer Jagjit Singh announcing that this was due to "unforeseen
circumstances". - mk/tmi

Two weeks ago, on 12th January 2015, the President of Persatuan Ummah Sejahtera Malaysia or PasMa, Phahrolrazi Mat Zawawi, led a delegations of 15 members to meet Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

The purpose of the meeting was to explore how PasMa can collaborate with DAP and PKR for the coming general election expected by 2018 at the latest. Also discussed was the possibility of PasMa becoming a political party to replace PAS in Pakatan Rakyat.

Is PasMa going to become PAS Baru? And does this mean PAS is on the verge of leaving Pakatan Rakyat or is going to get kicked out of Pakatan Rakyat?

The talk on the ground is that it would be untenable for PAS to remain in Pakatan Rakyat unless they change their President. DAP and PKR can continue working with PAS only if Abdul Hadi Awang is kicked out and is replaced by, say, Mat Sabu, the current number two.

What was not reported was that Lim Guan Eng gave PasMa RM1.5 million, which is supposed to be for flood relief work. However, so far none of that RM1.5 million has been used for the purpose it was alleged. Talk amongst PasMa circles is that the RM1.5 million is for the purpose of campaigning against Hadi to ensure he is kicked out before the next general election.

It is no secret that Hadi is lukewarm, or maybe even cold, towards DAP and PKR. That is already a well-known fact and Hadi has, in fact, not been attending any of the Pakatan Rakyat council meetings since the last year or so. And the Kajang Move plus the move to oust Selangor Menteri Besar Khalid Ibrahim is not the only reason for this.

DAP and PKR are very upset that Hadi no longer supports what Pakatan Rakyat considers the coalition’s common agenda. As Anwar Ibrahim always says, Pakatan Rakyat agrees to disagree. Hence Hadi has agreed to disagree with DAP and PKR on many issues. Other than the Kajang Move and the move to oust Khalid, Hadi also disagrees with DAP and PKR regarding the implementation of Hudud in Kelantan and the proposal for local council elections.

As the Malays would say: tidur satu bantal, mimpi lain-lain. PAS no longer shares the same dreams with DAP, while PKR either maintains an elegant silence or agrees to disagree with PAS.

It is not easy to sleep in the same bed and share the same pillow while having different dreams. And PAS has to now consider sharing DAP’s and PKR’s dreams or else they will have to leave the bedroom. And if this happens then PasMa will need to replace PAS in the Pakatan Rakyat bed.

Anwar Ibrahim has other problems on his hands and has no time to engage DAP and PAS in their marital problems. On 10th February 2015, the Federal Court will be delivering its verdict on Anwar’s sodomy conviction and this is of immediate concern to the opposition leader.

Will Anwar be set free or will he be sent to jail? Anwar is telling the public that there is no reason he should be sent to jail because there is no case against him.

What the Federal Court will have to consider is not whether Anwar is innocent or guilty of sodomy. That is not really the concern of the Federal Court. Instead, what the Federal Court needs to consider is whether there were any flaws in the trial and whether the Court of Appeal erred in overturning the acquittal and in coming to a guilty verdict.

The outcome will depend on whether Anwar’s lawyers were successful in convincing the court that the trial was flawed and that the Court of Appeal had erred in overturning the acquittal and in convicting Anwar. If so then the Federal Court would have to overturn the decision of the Appeal Court and Anwar would walk free.

In anticipation of an unfavourable verdict, Anwar is telling the world that he will be freed and in the event he is not freed then he would be a victim of a political conspiracy. Anwar is laying the ground for a revival of the Reformasi Movement, which emerged during his Sodomy 1 trial.

Reformasi 1, however, was successful because of PAS. Hence if PAS does not support Reformasi 2 then it will die at childbirth. And Anwar knows that Hadi will not waste time supporting Reformasi 2. In fact, most PAS leaders, Mat Sabu included, are of the opinion that Anwar is guilty.

Anwar knows that PAS will not support Reformasi 2 because during the recent hearing PAS did not mobilise any crowd as a show of support. Rafizi Ramli had sent instructions to all the PKR branches to send down a few busloads of supporters to attend the hearing. The aim was to get at least 50,000 supporters but all they got was a few hundred, and hardly any PAS members.

This upset Anwar even further. If he cannot get tens of thousands onto the streets then he cannot pressure the government to release him. He was hoping for a Tahrir Square scenario but a few hundred on the streets does not quite make it. And this is what worries Anwar.

Anwar was hoping that Hadi would be out of office by now. But Hadi is still holding on so efforts need to be stepped up to ensure a leadership change in PAS. And this is what PasMa and the RM1.5 million that Lim Guan Eng gave them is supposed to achieve. - RPK,Malaysia Today

The Seremban Coroner's Court ruled today that the
death of police detainee 42-year-old P Karuna Nithi two years' ago was
the result of assaults by both policemen and other lock-up detainees.

Coroner Jagjit Singh noted that Karuna Nithi, an engineer, had 49 injuries - mostly bruises - all over his body.

"My
verdict is that Karuna Nithi's death was caused by multiple injuries as
a result of physical assaults, abuses and other unlawful acts by
persons unknown but inclusive of police officers and other detainees in
the police lock-up where the deceased was detained.

"Furthermore, his death is also due to the failure in providing him the
necessary medical care and attention that was required and failure of
the police officers to stop other detainees from abusing the deceased in
the lock-up," Jagjit said.

"His behaviour does not give reasons for him to be physically abused by police officers and the inmates," the coroner added.

Karuna Nithi (above) was first remanded at Tampin district
police station in late May 2013 following an altercation with his wife
and further detained when his family could not raise his bail after he
was charged in court.

He wasfound dead in a lock-up at the Tampin district police headquarters on June 1, 2013.

Jagjit, who is a Sessions Court judge sitting as coroner, said the
deceased was a healthy adult male with no life-threatening diseases when
he entered the police lock-up.

“But he ended up dead three days later with 49 external injuries. A
custodial death with 49 external injuries should ring 'alarm bells' from
the word 'go',” said Jagjit in his judgment.

Kicked hard by cop

This is the second verdict
delivered by a coroner's court on police liability for the death of a
detainee. On Jan 16 in Kuala Lumpur, coroner Ahmad Bache had also ruled
that the police acted unlawfully in denying medical attention to
detainee P Chandran.

Police CCTV recordings from Karuna's lock-up showed him being assaulted by policemen and other detainees while in the cell.

Testimonies in court also revealed that he was transferred a total of
nine times from one cell to another and at one stage was even left in
the corridor of the police station.

Lawyer Eric Paulsen, who appeared for the family, had detailed the
assaults that Karuna suffered and submitted CCTV footage which among
others showed a policeman opening the door to Karuna's cell and kicking
him so hard that he stumbled backwards and fell to the floor.

Other footage showed the assaults the deceased suffered from his fellow inmates during which he was punched and kicked.

The pathologist's report from the Seremban general hospital listed the
deceased's list of injuries as bruises to the head, chest, abdomen,
shoulders, arms, and legs.

Pathologist in spotlight

Co-counsel Dr Dheeraj Bhar submitted that the evidence showed that
Karuna was ruthlessly beaten and that he died either due to skeletal
muscle tissue damage or agitation of the heart.

Earlier in court, the forensic pathologist who conducted the post-mortem
listed Karuna's death as caused by 'fatty change of the liver'.

Dheeraj, when contacted, said the coroner's decision today was a
landmark in that he agreed with counsel that the deceased could not have
been killed as a result of a 'fatty liver'.

“The coroner further described the pathologist report as erroneous. This
raises a point of concern as the pathologist heads a department in
Negeri Sembilan and Malacca but her knowledge is faulty.

“She needs to be investigated [...] we will discuss with the deceased's
family and possibly lodge a report against the pathologist with the
Malaysian Medical Council,” said Dheeraj.- mk

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